Category Archives: Dessert

This is a delish no-bake cheese cake recipe my sis shared with me. The cake is also gelatin-free. It is from the blog esite Suklaapossu, a Finnish blogger at Kotiliesi.fi. She calls this ‘törkeen hyvä juustokakku’ and tells about the different versions in her blog.

I made two versions to a party last weekend. One low-lactose and one normal. The cake is really easy and quick to make, and you prepaid it the day before. Everyone loved it. The two cakes were just right för the 17 of us.

My endeavours with ice cream continue. This is a semifreddo recipe shared by a colleague who has a habit of taking all sorts of delicacies to us and sharing the recipes. She is one who some days invites us to our educational kitchen at work to taste something she’s baked during a leap hour. Such a joy, such a dear colleague. Such great recipes!

One of my colleagues makes a delicious rhubarb semifreddo with meringue and I was tryinhg to find the recipe yesterday. No luck and I texted her knowing they are on holiday. No reply. Then I improvised with the basil-lemon ice cream recipe.

This is what you need for a small portion: 5 dl chopped rhubarb, 1,5 sugar, zest of half a lemon, 2 tbsp lemon juice, 1,5 dl double cream, 1 can of condensed milk and a handful of mixed (unsalted) nuts.

I got three stalks of rhubarb and chopped them. Cooked with 1 dl brown sugar and 1/2 dl caster sugar for 10 minutes. Then I let the rhubarb cool down.

The next step was to wash and grate the lemon zest, and squeeze the juice. And in to the pan with the rhubarb. Next it was time to mix in condensed milk, and whipped cream. In the end I added a few drops of burgundy food colouring for extra color but turned it in just slightly. The mixture was ready for a freezer tin (5 dl) and topping with crushed mixed nuts.

It was a long four hour wait for the ice cream to freeze. It was definitely worth it!

One of the delights of working in tourism and hospitality education is getting glimpses and spoonfuls of new ideas from eager students hustling and bustling in the educational kitchen testing and developing recipes.

This ice cream was served on chocolate brownie the other week in an event. My colleague kindly let me into the recipe which goes something like this:

Put the lemon zest, juice and basil into a blender, mix until smooth. Oh, what a lovely perfume! Whip the cream. Mix the basil-lemon mixture into the milk. Turn in the whipped cream and mix into smooth consistence. Place in a freezer proof bowl with a tight lid. Refrigerate for at least three hours.

Pre-heat the oven to 175 C. Beat the eggs, add the milk and flour. Line the oven pan with baking paper and put apple slices on the bottom. Sprinkle with sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour in the pancake batter. Bake for 25-30 min. Serve with sugar and apple jam.

Chocolate ganache: 200 g dark chocolate, 200 g butter, 1 dl confectioner’s sugar
Turn the oven on to 175 C. Grease two cake tins and dust them with cacao. Mix together all the dry ingredients. Melt the butter and let it cool. Beat the eggs and the milk. Turn in with the dry ingredients together with the butter and coffee.

Pour the batter in the cake tins and bake for about 30 min until done. Let cool and remove from the tins.

Whip the cream and mix in the cherry jam. Spread the mixture on the first cake layer.

Make the ganache. Place the butter and the chopped chocolate in a pan, and melt on medium heat. Add the sugar. Let the ganache cool and top the cake with it. Decorate with berries.

The rhubarb is growing really fast, at least 10 cm a day. It Sunday and soon it’ll be dessert time.

This recipe isfor six portions:

Two stalks of rhubarb, 2 dl cup of sugar, 1/2 vanilla pod, juice of 1/2 lemon and grated zest of one lemon

and

1,5 dl oatmeal, 1,5 dl almond flour, 2 tsp cardamom and 50 butter

Chop the rhubarb and put into a small pan. Squeeze in the lemon juice, scrape the vanilla pod and put the seeds and the halved pod into the pan. Add the sugar. Bring to boil and let simmer for 5 minutes.

Melt the butter and grace six small oven pans. I use the same ones as for creme brûlée, mix together the oatmeal and almond flour. Pour in the melted butter. Mix well,

Put a full table-spoon of the rhubarb into each pan and top with the crumble dough.

My sweet tooth won’t settle down and I find mysli scraping the pantry for anything sweet. Yesterday the only thing resembling dessert in the fridge was yoghurt and berries, hence The berries inspired me to a dessert with swimming in my favourite sauce. I’ve always thought this is a light sauce because there is no cream in it. Well, try it and judge for yourself.

For two portions you need:

2 tbsp butter, 3 tbsp cocoa powder, 3 tbsp sugar, 1 dl water

Boil up the water and add the rest of the ingredients. Stir constantly and simmer for five minutes.

Build the dessert into small bowls. Start with berries (raspberries, strawberries, anything you have. Spoon in the sauce and decorate with pecans.

You can also use the sauce as chocolate dip for fruit and berries. You might then serve it hot or eg in a founder pot. I started cooking this sauce as a student when Mom had subscribed me a recipe folder. I would get two or three recipes a month through mail. The folder never got full but I learned to make some of the dishes my heart with my own twist – this sauce, chili, gazpacho, gratinated fennel, pasta New Orleans… In the 90’s I would often make the Tandoori chicken – I spent some summers working in the UK as a student and learnt to love Indian food.